Header Right

It’s not always fun being a parent. Especially when that parent is me! As my husband and I mature in our Christian walk, we’ve re-evaluated and re-adjusted our values which directly impact our parenting. Two of our three children are technically adults now and it’s tough to balance that tightrope of knowing when to parent and knowing when to back down and let them figure things out on their own. Each of us have to experience ups and downs which results in making several mistakes along the way. It’s so very hard to sit back and “silently” watch my children make mistakes. But I know that they have to stumble and sometimes fall on their own to grow and strengthen in their individual walk with God. Let’s face it, if life were always happy and cheery, we wouldn’t need God so much other than to throw out a “Thank You” every now and then. It’s during those stumbles and falls when our faith and trust in God can grow and mature. And if we jump in and try to catch our kids when they stumble and fall, we’re shortchanging them in the long run by not allowing them to need God in their personal lives. We need to be careful as parents that we don’t insert ourselves as “God” in our kids’ lives. It would be so very easy to do but the results would be devastating.

At the end of the day, if we stick to our morals and beliefs about what is right and wrong and live that out in our own lives all we can hope for is that our kids are watching and will mirror that in their lives.

Will we stumble and fall along the way as parents? Absolutely, you can count on it! Will we make mistakes as parents? Absolutely! However, if we can say “I’m sorry” to our children and let them know we made a mistake and let them see humility and gentleness played out in our life, we’ll all be better off.

Here is God’s prescription for a strong family:

Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

Isaiah tells us about Jesus’ suffering on the cross. Not only did Jesus bear all of our sins on the cross, he also took all of our infirmities as well. Have you ever wondered why Mary Magdalene did not recognize Jesus when she first saw him after the resurrection? (John 20:15) It wasn’t until He spoke her name that she recognized him ~ perhaps she recognized His voice first. I believe that her vision was clouded by the last time she saw Jesus which was when He was on the cross.

Just as there were many who were appalled at him – his appearance was so disfigured beyond that of any man and his form marred beyond human likeness-

Isaiah 52:14

Jesus was on the cross for six hours. In that six hours, He took the punishment that each of us deserved. He took the punishment for every single person who had ever been born and for every single person who was yet to be born – including you and me. Not only did He take our sins but He also took our infirmities and our sorrows. It is unimaginable to our human understanding to even try to comprehend what He endured for us. The verse above explains that He was so disfigured and marred beyond human likeness it’s no wonder that Mary didn’t recognize Him. I can only imagine that she watched every minute in the six hours that He suffered on the cross. I imagine that Mary was so distraught with grief that it was just impossible for her to recognize Him as he was before His death.

How many of us actually allow Jesus to take our sins, our infirmities and our sorrows? From my own personal experience I know it’s very difficult to let go of these things. Even though we’re told all throughout Scripture to do so, we just keep hanging on. We need to learn to rely on our faith in Jesus.

“Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.”

Mark 10:52a

That day at Calvary, Jesus healed each of us. He made each of us whole. We just need to let go of ourselves and assume our identity in Christ.

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

James 1:5

It is impossible for us to make good decisions without wisdom ~ that is without God’s wisdom. Bible is full of verses about wisdom. Wisdom is very important to each of us in our daily lives. However, we need to make sure we’re cultivating and growing the correct wisdom ~ specifically God’s wisdom. Think about how very important it must be. When God told King Solomon to ask for whatever he wanted, Solomon asked for wisdom. He asked for wisdom over everything else he could possibly ask for – wealth, good health, longevity, honor, death of enemies, etc. (2 Chronicles 1:7-12) I’m not sure I would have thought to ask for wisdom but I’m grateful that Solomon did. He left us with a piece of that wisdom in several chapters in the Bible. If you need advice on anything that comes up in your life, more than likely you can find that advice in the book of Proverbs.

In my Life Application Study Bible (NIV version), knowledge is described as good but it goes on to state that there is a key difference between “knowledge” (having the facts) and “wisdom” (applying those facts to life). We can absorb all the knowledge possible but if we do not have wisdom, that knowledge is useless. We must seek and ask for God’s wisdom to live the life we’re meant to live. I’ll close with a couple verses from the book of Proverbs:

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

Proverbs 1:7

A discerning man keeps wisdom in view, but a fool’s eyes wander to the ends of the earth.

Proverbs 17:24

He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe.

Did you ever really listen to the words in the wonderful hymn “What a Friend We Have in Jesus.” I just listened to it, thanks to a dear friend who shared a wonderful station with me. These two lines just jumped out at me:

O what peace we often forfeit,
O what needless pain we bear

All because we do not take our pain and burden and lay them at Jesus’ feet. He asks us over and over in Scripture to do this but we just continue to carry these heavy burdens on our own shoulders. Read these comforting words from Jesus:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.

Matthew 11:28-30

Such promising words for us to stand on today! Take your burdens to Jesus and don’t forfeit your peace. We were never promised a pain-free life but if we learn to trust in Him we can find peace in all situations. Keep these verses tucked close to your heart and learn to rely on Him in good times and bad times.

Do you ever wish you had Herculean strength? There have been times in my life when I wish I did. However, I’ve learned that we cannot rely on our own strength in this world. We must rely on God’s strength if we want to accomplish anything!

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Isaiah 41:10

The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped.

Psalm 28:7b

God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.

Psalm 46:1

I can do everything through him who gives me strength.

Philippians 4:13

The Bible is full of verses like these. Why is it so hard for us to rely on His strength and not our own? I think it just takes practice and being intentional about our focus on Jesus. One thing I notice in all the verses above is the use of the present tense. How comforting and promising for us today. Take heart and know that God is with you always.